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For the first time since 1980, the number of three public (state, territorial and hospital) have stagnated in France in 2008. Specifically, they rose only 1800postes. From never-seen since 1980. At 31 December 2008, according to report data annually on the Public Service published yesterday, the Hexagon were almost 5.3 million employees, or 20.5% of total employment, and 656,000 more than a decade ago.

The virtual stagnation of 2008 is largely to the credit of the state civil service has continued to decrease in population from 2006. It has eliminated 77,000 jobs last year, including through non-replacement of a staff of two who retire and to continue the policy of transfer of powers to local authorities. This represents a decline of 3.1% of its workforce in a year.France, employs 2.4 million civil servants, 69.5% and 14.1% of holders of soldiers. This total is 1.4% lower than in 1998, representing a decline of nearly 35,000 agents in a decade.

The numbers have declined in 2008 across all departments, with the exception of Justice and the prime minister. The portfolios of Education and Ecology have been most affected by the cuts with cuts respective 43,000 and 23,000 agents. Finally, almost a two-state official now works in education, one in five of Defense and Interior to eleven.

2328euros per month for a state agent

Another finding of the report 2009-2010 on the state of the public service: local authorities have continued to recruit with a vengeance with nearly 70,000 new jobs in 2008.The local civil service now employs 1.82 million people. A total of 3.9% higher than in 2008 and, especially, a surge of 40% compared to 1998. This dramatic increase is partly related to the second law of decentralization occurred in 2003. The regions – which employs only 4% of all local officials – have been particularly intensive public sector jobs as they saw their numbers jump over a decade, from 22.5% on average each year and even 49% per year since 2005. In more than one in four cases, recruitment occurred three years prior to 2008 had nothing to do with transfer of responsibilities from the State.

The public hospital has, meanwhile, was more reasonable since the increase of its workforce in 2008 was four times lower than that of local authorities: 1% over one year or more 10000agents.At December 31, staff of public hospitals accounted for approximately 1 million people. Those numbers have increased, on average ten years, 1.8% each year.

Pay later, an officer of the state received an average of 2328 euros net per month in 2008. An increase of 3.7% in current euros a year and 0.9% after allowing for inflation. Territorial Agent earned nearly 600 euros less and a hospital, 150. In both cases, the territorial and hospital officials have seen their wages decline in net income a year, by 0.6% and 0.1% in constant euros.

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Washington announced Friday it had cleared the merger between United Airlines and Continental Airlines. The Department of Justice indicated that the two U.S. companies had responded to his objections to their merger, leaving a number of slots for landing and takeoff at Newark International Airport near New York.

Downstream Europe in July

United Airlines, the third American company, Continental Airlines and fourth, had announced in May their intention to merge under the single name of United. The European Union, the guardian of competition in Europe, had already given its approval to the transaction at the end of July. In a statement, Brussels stated that his investigation confirmed the complementarity of the two companies' networks for Transatlantic routes, since they operate hubs in different U.S. cities."So there will be a marginal increase in market share," concluded the European Union. But a refusal of the United States was to be feared, as authorities in 2001 vetoed a previous merger between United Airlines and U.S. Airways on the grounds that it would reduce competition in the transport sector to the detriment of the public.

Fusion 1 October

The U.S. Department said it had closed its investigation as a result of the merger between the two companies, which gives them the field libre.Dans a statement, the two companies said they expected to complete their reconciliation of by 1 October. By marrying, they hope to better withstand the difficulties faced by the industry today, including the rising cost of fuel and competition from low cost airlines.Together they serve 370 destinations in 59 countries, with a combined turnover of 29 billion dollars, a fleet of nearly 700 aircraft and about 87,000 employees worldwide.

August subdued for the French economy. According to a first estimate, the flash PMI index of purchasing managers stood at its lowest level since five months, to 59 points, against 59.7 in July, reported Markit. Pessimists will note that the services are in decline, against 61.1 to 59.9 in July. As for industry, she has continued to destroy jobs in the month of August.

But optimists emphasize that, although down compared to July, the PMI indicator reflects a strong growth in business services as industry. This also recovers to 54.7 against 53.9 a month earlier. In general, grade Markit, the two sectors have "stronger growth in the volume of new business" on the month. What "confirm the solidity of the French takeover," analyzes Jack Kennedy, economist at Markit.The government has revised its forecast Friday for growth for 2011 downward from 2.5% to 2%.

On another positive note, employment continued to grow, driven by strong hiring in the services. Above all, companies "remain confident about their business outlook," "anticipate new business opportunities" and "hope for an improvement in overall economic conditions over the next twelve months," notes Markit.

Germany shaped

In Germany, activity has accelerated in August, reaching the highest since three years, according to Markit index. This was up by 59.3 points, against 59 in July. "The strong growth in services from the index, while the industry recorded a slight slowdown in growth."While some manufacturers are worried about the holding of world trade, the robust performance of services will be crucial in the second half" to maintain the dynamism of the recovery in Germany, analyzes Tim Moore, an economist at Markit.

The PMI index for the entire euro area fell slightly to 56.1, against 56.7 points in July. This result, which indicates a growth in activity, conceals alarming disparities between national economies, growth still based primarily on Germany and France, "warned Markit.

"After an excellent second quarter, growth in the third quarter should be relatively robust to the heart of Europe," said Pierre-Olivier Beffy, chief economist at Exane BNP Paribas."A further rise in significant business is in the cards, probably beyond current expectations."

Less optimistic economists at BNP Paribas' doubt that the dynamism in the services prevent the European economy to slow sharply in the second half. "

During the month of August, when all friends are gone on vacation, a feeling of loneliness can soon make its appearance. That's why the site RentaFriend chose the summer to offer its services in the United Kingdom and France. Since last July on the other side of the Channel in recent days on the canvas hex, this website offers to rent an American friend in the true sense of the word.

For a subscription of 19 euros per month, or 54 euros per year, the site provides access to a database containing the profiles and contact information of 283,000 men and women worldwide. These people, they register for free, detailing their name, age, place of residence but also hobbies and passions. The 2500 subscribers can then contact them by email or telephone to offer them to accompany them to the restaurant, cinema, for a stroll, a VIP or travel.

The company to 8 euros per hour

If no tariff is imposed, the friend offers to rent usually a base price of 8 euros per hour. The latter, for which all costs are borne by the person who contacted him, pocketed the entire sum at the end of the day. The site itself, survives financially through paid subscription for access to the base coordinates. "The site is profitable," says founder Scott Rosenbaum.

According to the American version of RentaFriend, launched in October 2009, it has been the rental of their friendship their daily livelihood. "If you charge $ 20 an hour and you work three days a week, you can make $ 1,920 a month. If you work full time at the same hourly rate, you can reap USD 3,200 a month, "promises the site. "There is no obligation to be friends with anyone.You decide which bind with a friendship, how much you charge and how long you want to work. You make all the rules! You're the boss! ".

"A new way to meet people"

This type of site is already paying friendlies in Japan, where the archipelago are at least a dozen. RentaFriend exports so the project in Europe. From what to wear uncomfortable associations fighting against loneliness. "The idea of connecting people who feel alone with others is positive because the latter do not occur. But it would be better if it was not paid. The danger in this scenario to be in a relationship distorted trade, while the need to promote human relations, "says Peter Villelongue, association, St. Vincent de Paul who fight against the phenomenon.

"I think people do not fully grasp the concept.Nearly 90% of members are not alone, or depressed. The evidence shown, "defends Scott Rosenbaum facing controversy. "The most common use is that of finding a local friend to play the guide during a trip or looking for dialogue for learning languages. People buy the company, they lease time another person for a specific purpose. Scott Rosenbaum said he also "stunned" by the debate provoked by RentaFriend since its launch in Europe: "I thought the U.S. was prudish and that other countries were more relaxed," wryly creator of the site.

Pinned on the risks of sexual abuses, Scott Rosenbaum scans again the critics: "Every profile is manually checked and we have a system of alerts that words allow us to act. Anyway, there are thousands of website offering sex on the Internet.There is no reason for an individual to try on RentaFriend.

For the rest, Scott Rosenbaum is confident. "I was approached by organizations and private funds but for now, I'm not looking for investors. However, if someone is interested in buying, I'm willing to listen to offers, "he says. Meanwhile, the young man of 30 years is an international coverage by the end of the year. "People should open their minds and see the benefits they can derive rather than judge, consider til.

A Chinese owner of the club from Liverpool? The fund China Investiment Corporation (CIC), led by the wealthy Kenny Huang, would in any case confirmed its interest in the Reds. More than just a word, CIC has already reached the cash to afford the football club. And, by selling 9% of share capital the fund held in Morgan Stanley. Amount generated: 558 million (the équivelant 351.4 million pounds). Either the decimal point, the debt of British club, reports the Guardian.

Another businessman claiming close discussions with the club to five European Cup victories. He called and said Yahya Kirdi be supported by a group of Canadian investors and Saudi Arabia. "Our group is in advanced negotiations with Tom Hicks and George Gillett, current owners of Liverpool Football Club, to purchase 100% of the club.An agreement was reached on the major terms, including purchase price, repayment of debt (approximately 300 million euros, ie) banks RBS and Wells Fargo to finance a new stadium Stanley Park. The formal contract of sale is in its final stages of negotiation, "he announced.

Statements to be taken lightly. For the sale of the club is orchestrated by Martin Broughton, Chairman of the club, with the support of the British bank Barclays. But Yahya Kirdi does not seem to have negotiated with them directly.

But whether or Yahya Kirdi Kenny Huang, sale of Liverpool seems on track. The leaders of the Reds have more alerted the Premier League, as want new rules on sale of a club, a club takeover was imminent.

The club Liverpool is not the only shine in financial difficulty.Since the beginning of the crisis, fifteen of the twenty clubs that make up the Premier League are looking for investors. According to the audit firm Deloitte, the overall debt of the elite of British football came to 3.6 billion euros in 2009. Manchesteur United, Arsenal and Chelsea, the other three clubs in the "Big Four" are also on trial.

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The battle over Sunday work in Paris is not over. The prefecture of Paris has indeed refused classification tourist areas of the capital, where normally only stores open on Sundays, Scope of outstanding consumer use (chip), the CFTC said Saturday, confirming a report Le Parisien. A classification that makes all the difference for employees.

The designation entitles them to chip counterparties determined by collective agreement, and failing that, to compensatory time off, salary doubled and the ability to refuse work on Sundays. This classification is written into the law of August 2009 on Sunday work and allowed malls open illegally on Sunday to continue the practice without having to pay fines.

Paris will not benefit from this device."The Prefect of Paris has denied the request of Mayor Bertrand Delanoe to rank tourist areas of the capital as Bullet," the CFTC said in a statement. For the union, this decision is contrary to the promise made by Nicolas Sarkozy, that "those who work on Sundays will be voluntary and paid twice."

The exception "tourist"

The zones of tourist interest are beyond the rule.The Sunday opening of all types of businesses is right, and employees are not entitled to compensatory rest must or a doubling of earnings.

"Once again the argument is made that the law Maille on Sunday is only a law made for large retailers, and this undoubtedly to the detriment of family life, personal and spiritual associations," says the CFTC.

There are seven tourist areas in Paris: Part of the Rue de Rivoli, Place des Vosges and rue des Francs-Bourgeois, Arcola Street, Avenue des Champs Elysees, part of the Viaduc des Arts Daumesnil , part of the Boulevard Saint-Germain, part of the Butte Montmartre.The government wants to see more shops open on Sunday in Paris and proposed a map of tourist areas greatly expanded.

The Socialist mayor blocked the project but on the field, she noted that a growing number of supermarkets began, immediately, to open on Sunday afternoon with impunity.

(With AFP)

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Just over one month after the arrival of a new Chinese shareholder – Fosun Group, up 7.1% stake – Club Med is again subject of speculation, the Sunday Times reporting that Sunday that an investment company managing the funds of the family of the Sultan of Brunei, BMB Group, plans to file a takeover offer for the group of holiday villages. His proposal, presented as a friendly, valued the club at 800 million euros, almost double the market capitalization of the company, which was about 430 million euros on Friday.

BMB Group has denied reports Sunday night in a statement."The BMB Group is in discussions with any officer or shareholder of Club Med as suggested by the Sunday Times article, it says Harold Alby, a spokesman for the group totally free credit score.

At the same time, nobody wanted to comment at Club Med. The Sunday Times, BMB Group has already the support of three of the four major shareholders of the group chaired by Henri Giscard d'Estaing (Chinese Fosun, GL Partners hedge fund and investment company Rolaco), and finalize it this week discussions with the first of them, Fipar International, a subsidiary of Caisse des Depots and management of Morocco.

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The regulation of the financial world is big today. In the U.S., the proposed revised financial regulations would be voted on today in the Senate after the House of Representatives has given its go-ahead in July. Some measures have been abandoned over the debate, as the proposed tax credit, but the final text is still the biggest overhaul of financial regulation since the 1930s.

Meanwhile, a meeting is being held in Switzerland and covers the establishment of new prudential standards proposed by the committee of "Basel III". The objective of these measures is to raise the level of capital requirements at banks to limit to reduce the risk of bankruptcy of these establishments, and limit the risk of traders in the market, including products derivatives.But even the regulators and central bankers seem to make concessions against their original objectives, under pressure from banking lobby. They are afraid that a new credit crisis since experts believe that these new rules would force banks to raise more than 1.000 billion in new capital. The final text must be presented at the G20 summit in Seoul in South Korea, 11 and 12 November.

Reform in Europe delayed

And in Europe, the Twenty-seven have found common ground on how to conduct stress tests that will be published July 23. However, the reform of financial supervision has been delayed over disagreements between the Parliament and the Council of Europe. It should not come into effect before September, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The fireworks on July 14, is sacred in many municipalities, but not Mennecy. This town of Essonne is indeed one of the few to have made the choice to give up for budgetary reasons. "This is the third consecutive year that we do not celebrate the national holiday, says Elizabeth Vasseur, deputy mayor. It is a decision we made when we arrived responsibilities. Given the state of public finances, we have chosen to focus on building maintenance, or renovation of two schools being. Because we do not want to raise taxes, "she argues. The savings amounted to ten thousand euros. If people have stayed up Mennecy perhaps no worse the other 364 days of the year, few cities, however, he followed suit.

For the celebrations of July 14 remains a symbolic moment for which the municipalities continue to invest in broadly stable, despite the severity of wind hovering at the national level. In Paris, the budget devoted to one of the biggest fireworks of the Hexagon is constant since 2001. An investment of € 500,000 by July 14 to 30 tons of powder and 30 minute show. "In the current economic climate, we did not want that expense increases, say to the City of Paris. But it seems important to properly celebrate this national event. " Same story in a smaller city, Chalon-sur-Saone (71), where the budget for fireworks is roughly the same from year to year, despite a desire for renewal: "Our budget is constant for 5-6 years, explains Cédric Sementi, responsible for the event.But we chose this year to remove the sound of fire to prolong the duration of the show. " In total, 14 July festivities will be spread over five days in Chalon whole through the operation "Summer Sonatas" paydayloan.

The fireworks, creator of the social bond

Jacques Couturier Organization, which has won this year's market fireworks in the city of Paris, his explanation for this relative constancy: "The fireworks created a social bond that we all need in times crisis, analyzes its founder. Increasingly, we are asked to create fireworks outside the July 14, for example recently at the Championnat de France cyclist Vendee. Especially since the resources allocated to the festivities usually remain small relative to the overall budget of Commons.In Sceaux (92) – which does more than fireworks on July 14 for 10 years, preferring the fires of St. John – the various festivities cost about 200,000 euros to the municipality, with a total budget of 30 million. "This costs in a city hall, which is most likely to suffer from the crisis, are the social or educational expenses," said Philip Lawrence, Mayor of Sceaux.

Among Europe's leading fireworks, Lacroix-Ruggieri, there is however a slight decline in budgets. The amounts invested were stable in 2009, but budgets have contracted by about 5% this year. "All budgets ranges from 2000 euros to 500,000 euros, have been involved," says Jean-Michel Dambielle, Director General Operational Group. And if the national holiday of July 14 is still with us, removal of business tax still worried the bomb."The fiscal autonomy of municipalities will decrease their budgets might be affected, analysis Picard, CEO of Group F, creator of the fireworks in Paris in 2008. Will we still saved? We'll see next year. "

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J-1. That Tuesday morning Eric Woerth will present his Cabinet bill on pension reform. This text provides for the postponement by 2018 the legal age of retirement at age 62 (as against 60 now) and increase by 2020 the contribution period for a full pension at 41 5 installments. It also proposes to raise over 10 years to 10.55% of gross salary pension contribution rate of employees.Meanwhile, the government plans to introduce draft consideration – unprecedented – the strain at work to enable employees who have had a difficult career to continue to retire at age 60 but also extend the system "long careers "which allows people who started working early to liquidate their retirement before age 60.

"Unjust and unacceptable"

Trade unions, traditionally opposed the reforms they consider "unfair and unacceptable" because it would further inequalities have already planned to protest during the presentation of the Council of Ministers."The proposed reform does not respond to questions of employment, particularly youth and seniors, or the reversal of gender inequalities, or to the recognition of the hardship … It refers to the uncertainty of future generations sustainability of pension secured by the division, they were justified in a statement. They also criticized the closure of financial reform that puts "more than 85% of efforts" to employees only and require "a different distribution of wealth produced, particularly through higher taxes than expected capital income and senior income.

Eric Woerth's proposal to improve the bill at the time of the examination to the National Assembly from September 7 on three aspects of the text (strain at work, and long careers polypensionnés) has yet not had the desired effect.Even the beginnings of a better consideration of the prevention of the hardship brought up by the entourage of the Minister of Labour at a meeting with labor, has left them unmoved. "We want a broader discussion, said Friday Eric Aubin, the negotiator of the CGT, after an interview Rue de Grenelle. The position of the government that it seeks to show a continued dialogue. But we ride seriously and it confirms our intention to build a strong mobilization on September 7. "

On this day, the unions have scheduled a new day of strikes and unit mobilization, hoping to do better than June 24 when 800 000 people (and by 1.9 million CGT) had beaten the streets across France to protest against the postponement of 60 years. And thus weigh more on debates in Parliament.They do not despair, no longer convinced by that number of MPs to amend by Social Affairs Committee – where the text will be examined from July 20 to 22 – the bill. The CFDT has also planned to "harass" the summer MPs in their constituency. Act II of the 2010 pension reform does so may just be beginning.

"SPECIAL – The challenges of pension reform